WB3JRY – Ray

Florence, South Carolina

The current flag of South Carolina was adopted on January 28, 1861.  The flag consist of a dark blue field with a white crescent and a white palmetto tree.  The design of the flag is believed to date back to 1775 to be used by the South Carolinian soldiers in the American Revolutionary War.  The dark blue was the colour of the Militias uniforms and the crescent was the symbol on their caps.  The palmetto tree symbolizes the defense of Fort Moultrie which was built with palmetto logs. The palmetto tree does not have rings so in June 28th 1776 when the British attacked the cannon balls did not break through the wall but were embedded in to the walls.

The official nickname for South Carolina is The Palmetto State, which refers to the state tree (the sabal palmetto). Commonly called the cabbage palmetto, the sabal palmetto (Inodes Palmetto) was added to the “National” flag of South Carolina after it seceded from the Union in 1861. A palmetto remains on the present-day state flag, a sabal palm appears on the South Carolina state seal, and is even mentioned in the salute to the flag of South Carolina (“I salute the flag of South Carolina and pledge to the Palmetto State love, loyalty and faith”).